I have a Shock One review sample. The reason it's more expensive is because it's USB, and contains its own DAC. Similar to when you compare the Shock One and the Shock to the Corsair HS1 vs the HS1A respectively. I'm fairly certain they use similar drivers too. So if you're not hellbent on the virtual 5.1 surround then there's really no reason for the Shock One other than simplicity of USB connection. But on another hand, the 5.1 does show its buff in movies.